Avatar: The Legend of Brekka
by Miss Buch
Summary: Brekka, an earthbender, is the next Avatar after Korra - he must learn to control all the elements before a new breed of bender (the energy benders) take over. Will he follow the right path or will he be blocked by the people that want to kill him and the ones he loves? Rated T for violence and possible death of previous characters in flashback sequences - I haven't decided yet.
1. The New Avatar

_**Hello fellow ATLA and ALOK fans :) this is my first fic for Avatar so I hope it lives up to some people's high standards. Please review, I always want to know what people think of my writing - I have a feeling this is going to be a long story...**_

_**Miss Buch x**_

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Brekka stared listlessly at the ground as he moved the straw broom across the dirt. His mind was empty for the time being, while he swept the ground behind his little family's house. I'm nearly finished, the thought, then I can practice. He kept on for a few more minutes, trying to move quicker as he saw the sun beginning to set far towards the west, the pinks and yellows tinging the clouds. Leaning the broom on the stone wall he raised his arms and shifted his legs further apart to lower his centre of gravity. He went through the forms slowly, making precise movements and occasionally adding his own twists as he imagined fighting an actual opponent. Brekka bent his long legs and then flipped up, rotating twice on the air and then landing on his feet, feeling the vibrations of the landing run through his body. There was only one man in the village that could fight. Brekka was an earth bender, but had never had anyone to teach him, so he had learned to fight in hand to hand combat from the man in his village. That man had learnt from some of the best (or so it was said) and would teach anyone who wanted to learn without asking for a reward. Brekka was broken out of his trance by a shout from inside the small stone house behind him. Brekka brought down his foot slowly out of a kick and exhaled. He turned his head a little to see his best friend. Mika, his shirshu, was sleeping at the other end of his back yard. Brekka had met Mika when his was barely eight. He had been running about in the outskirts of his village and had strayed too far away from the tiny houses. Mika had come out of nowhere and jumped on the poor boy. This was the first time that he had earthbent. Brekka had slammed his hand down into the ground, causing a small pillar of earth to erupt from between his legs, giving him enough space to crawl out from under the beast. The thing had rolled about for a moment and then faced the small boy, looking slightly confused. Brekka frowned, unsure of what to do. The shirshu was also unsure, lifting its head the air to sniff hesitantly. He slowly held up a hand, trying to be as cautious as possible. Its head moved towards his hand, sniffing it and then licking his skin. He moved his hand, gently stroking the slightly wet nose of the animal. As it turned out, Mika had smelt Brekka a mile away and decided he wanted more of it. The rest was history. The pair were now as thick as thieves in the nine years they had spent side by side. Grabbing the broom and running a hand through his short brown hair, Brekka made his way through the wooden back door and into the house. He propped the broom inside a small nook near the door and went into the cool living room to see three men standing in the middle, his mother just behind them.

"Mum?" he asked his mother, Jin, as she stepped out from behind the men.

"These men want to speak with you Brekka, apparently it's important" she placed a hand gently on his shoulder

"Is it about my father?" Jin shook her head. Brekka's father had left Jin as soon as he found out that she was pregnant, and they had had no contact in the past 17 years.

"Brekka" said the man in front as Jin left the room. Brekka's eyes trained the man before him. He was dressed in some fine Earth Kingdom clothes, far cry from the rough cloth tunic and trousers that he wore (and had made) himself. The bright emerald greens looked vibrant against the yellow hues that lined the edges of his shirt.

"We have reason to believe" he paused "that you are the next Avatar" Brekka's eyes widened in confusion

"What?!" he asked, taking a step back from the man

"The oldest and last lion turtle made contact with us. It told us your name"

"No! I can't be the Avatar! It must be confused or something" he took a look at the expressions on men's faces "I'm just an earth bender, and I can barely do that!" Brekka's head was starting the reel at the new information. The three men looked at each other – surely this boy must be able to bend something other than earth? Avatar Korra had some degree control over three of the four elements before she was even five years old.

"The Lion Turtle does not lie. _You_ are the next Avatar" Oma and Shu, he felt dizzy. Brekka's hand went to his head and he stumbled over to the wooden chair in the corner of the small room. He slumped into it, holding his head low to stop himself from fainting. Jin came back in, holding a tray of jasmine tea and some small cups for the men in her living room. Her bare feet moved slowly over the rough earth as she placed the tray on the low table.

"Are you alright Brekka?" she asked, frowning in concern for her only son

"according to these men" he said, taking a shaky breath "I am the Avatar, the next one after Avatar Korra" Brekka looked up at his mother's startled face and then looked back down at the dirt floor as a wave of nausea swept over him.

"But Brekka can't bend anything other than earth" she said to the men "he has learned how to fight, in case of emergency since… well, you know – he has never had anyone to teach him they ways of bending. How did this even happen? It's odd enough that he is an earth bender - his whole family are non-benders" Brekka's head shot up, ignoring the pain

"What about my father?" Jin looked down at her sons dark green eyes

"I-I don't know. All I know is that he was a non-bender, but I can't be sure about the rest of his family" Jin thought back to all the conversations she had had with Brekka's father about his family. She frowned "I think he said his father's name was Bolin"

"The Pro-Bender?" the tallest man at the back piped up. He was wearing the dark reds and gold's of the Fire Nation

"I have no idea"

"He was one of the best Earth Benders in his time. He was good friends with Avatar Korra – they often fought together. I'm pretty sure he's still alive" Brekka grunted quietly at this.

"Madam, do you mind if we use this table?" the Earth Kingdom man said to Jin

"By all means" she said, lifting the tray of tea and returning it to the kitchen.

"Please sit here" he directed at Brekka, who did as instructed. The man pulled a pebble out of his pocket and placed it on the table in front of the 17 year old. Brekka looked at the small stone, and to his surprise he started to move so that it was eventually standing on its curved rather than flat side. He hadn't even been concentrating that hard on it. Jin returned to stand a little behind Brekka so that she was leaning her back on the wall, watching her son carefully. The man picked up the pebble and it replaced by a candle. The Fire Nation man stepped forward and simply flicked his wrist, lighting the candle with a small flame that burst from his index finger. Brekka watched the flame for a while but didn't notice for a moment that its movements and synced up with his own breathing. With every intake of air, the flame would lift and then die down when time he exhaled.

"Spirits" he said quietly. The third man, the one who had been quiet during the whole conversation moved ever so slightly. Brekka barely had time to register what the water bender was doing before his instincts kicked in. the man's had flew out of his robe drawing a small piece of water with it, immediately turning it into an ice spike headed straight for Jin. Brekka jumped up, throwing a hand in the spike's path. On contact with his skin the ice turned back into water and dropped to the floor. Jin gasped at the speed at which her son had moved - she didn't know he was capable of doing any of these things. Brekka felt like he was frozen, he hadn't moved since the icicle – which should have at least pierced his skin – had splashed onto the rough earthen floor. He slowly lowered his arm, dark green eyes watching the men for anymore movements.

"The elements are responding to you – not just one, but three of them. Brekka, _you _are the Avatar" Brekka ran a hand through his hair, feeling his small perfect world shatter around him.

"You will need to find a teacher first" Brekka stood up, starting to pace so that he could work through is confusion

"Ok, let me get this straight. What you have just shown is that I am the Avatar" the men nodded "and I need to learn to bend all the elements so that I can keep balance to the world, since the energy benders have risen" the men nodded again "and I need to find teachers for all four elements so that I can do this." His mother placed a comforting hand on his shoulder.

"You don't have to do this if you don't want to" Jin said quietly to him. Brekka closed his eyes and breathed deeply, giving himself a chance to get his thoughts in order. His placed his large, slightly calloused hand on top of her slim one and looked at her pale face

"It's ok mum. If this is my fate then so be it. We all have choices to make. If I pick the wrong one then it's my own fault. My father made the wrong choice, and I'm not about to do the same" He turned back to the men in front of him

"Which element do I learn first?"

"I suggest you learn earthbending since you already know a little."

"Who should I learn from?" this time the man from the Fire Nation piped up

"Master Bolin. He learnt from the great Chief Beifong herself when he trained as part of Republic City's police force. He lives and works in Ba Sing Se. If you are ready, we can take you there now, but it will take several days on giant eel hound" Brekka fixed his eyes on the man

"I think I would prefer to make the journey alone and by foot. If you had a map I could use, that would be highly useful." The three men looked at each other for a moment seeming to confer telepathically and they nodded.

"Fine. But it is a long journey" he said, placing a map down on the table

"I will be fine."

"Alright then. Thank you for your time – I imagine we will see each other again" the three men bowed deeply to Brekka and his mother and then left. Jin went back into her bedroom, while Brekka unrolled the map and looked over the coloured land masses. His fingers traced the path from his tiny village on the outskirts of the southern Earth Kingdom towards the north easterly of the yellow land mass that represented the Earth Kingdom. A cross had been marked on the map as to the location of Ba Sing Se by one of the men. So that's where Master Bolin is. The man who might be my grandfather. That's a long way away. His train of thought was interrupted my his mother's voice

"Brekka, please could you come in here?" Brekka frowned slightly and followed his mother's path through the house. He saw that she had placed a long wooden box on the bed.

"What is it mum?" his mother sat down cross legged on the bed behind the box and motioned for him to sit opposite.

"Your grandmother, my mother" she said as she ran her fingers fondly over the wood "was one of the Kyoshi warriors." Brekka's eyebrows lifted, but he said nothing "And so was I. She taught me how to fight, as I have taught you" Jin paused as she unclasped the metal that was holding the box closed "you come from a family of people who cannot bend, that is true – but that does not mean that we never knew how to fight" she opened the box, revealing what looked like two gold sticks and a very blunt sword to Brekka. His mother stood up, lifting the metal sticks and adopting a fighting stance. With a flick of her wrists the metal spread into fans, which looked very sharp from what Brekka could see. "These are Kyoshi warrior fans. They are made of a metal that looks like gold, but is much sharper and far more deadly"

"Wow" he said in admiration as she began to move about the small room, fighting an imaginary opponent. Brekka could now see how the fans were used in the movements that his mother had taught him and immediately started to work out how he could factor them into what he had learnt from the man in the village. Jin stowed the fans away picking up the other weapon.

"This is a katana – a defensive weapon designed to block swords and elements. I don't know what it is made from but it is very strong and highly resilient" Brekka just sat back, trying to process the information being thrown at him. "I intended to give these to you when the time was right. Now that we know you are the Avatar, you have a long journey ahead of you. I want you to take these with you." Brekka stood up

"Mum, I can't take these – they belong to you"

"Brekka, you are my only child. I love you more than life itself and I _am_ giving you these. I would have given them to you even if you weren't the Avatar. Three generations of strong and brave women have used these weapons. Now it is your turn" she held out the katana, in its scabbard, to him. He reached out a hand and ran the pads of his fingers over the engraving on the metal – _nothing is impossible unless you believe to be._ He took the katana from his mother and then pulled her into a fierce hug.

"Thank you" he said quietly into her long, dark hair. Jin said nothing as tears slowly dripped down her face. This was the first time she had cried since Brekka's father had left them.


	2. Let the Journey Begin

I ship Smellershot. Everyone should :) Please enjoy, and R&R as always

Miss Buch xxx

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The next morning Brekka left his house, not knowing when he would return. He was carrying the weapons his mother hand given him in his sleeves and across his back. He had some food and a little money in a bag, along with some extra clothes and a few medical supplies. It had taken some coercion on his part to make Mika stay behind – the two had been inseparable for years but Brekka knew this journey would be dangerous and he did not want his best friend or his mother getting hurt, so he made Mika stay behind for protection. Explaining this to the beast had been quite difficult. From what he could tell, it would take him at least a couple of weeks to reach Ba Sing Se by walking. He had been told that Ba Sing Se was similar to Republic City, where Avatar Korra had lived, but Ba Sing Se was far bigger and older. He had heard that Republic City was highly advanced in terms of its technology and infrastructure – over there they had cars – he had seen a picture or the metal creation once in a book his mother had given him. In his village they were still using carts and ostrich horses. After saying a brief goodbye to his mother he took one last look at his house and stet off. It did not take him long to leave the village and start walking down the dusty road to the next one. He was thinking hard as he walked, the steady rhythm of his feet helping him to concentrate. With each Avatar there had always been something to tip the balance in the world – with Avatar Aang and Avatar Roku, it had been the Fire Nation trying to take over. Avatar Korra had to deal with the non-benders and Amon trying to destroy Republic City. For him it was the energy benders. These were a new breed of bender that had appeared around 20 years ago – they couldn't bend any elements but instead bent energy itself, like heat and light. It was rumoured however that some were so strong that they could bend your very life force. They had been the death of Avatar Korra – they had been lucky she wasn't in the Avatar state. Brekka shuddered at the thought. Having that much control over a person was crazy.

The first week or so of travelling was quite uneventful for Brekka. He followed the map, stopping and resting at villages and finding food in the wilderness so that he could save his money for when he really needed it. The road was dusty and his bare feet were covered in blisters due to all the walking, but Brekka was used to it. He had never owned a pair of shoes in his life and he preferred it that way – he like the way the earth felt beneath his skin. He was quite happy with his own company, walking silently and enjoying the freedom a little. He missed his mother dearly – they had been there to support each other throughout his life and now that she wasn't with him he felt like part of him was missing, but he had promised to send her a letter as soon as he got to Ba Sing Se. It had taken a lot of convincing to make Mika stay at home and protect his mother. He was going to miss the shirshu too. The beast had whined when he left and Brekka could still hear the sounds echoing in his ears. However he kept these thoughts to himself as he knew these roads were covered with thieves and bandits – they could smell weakness a mile away. Brekka was approaching a wooded area ahead of him – the path he needed to take went straight through here and it was covered by tall bushes and trees. By his reckoning, it would take him at least a day to traverse this part of the trip. So he made sure he had enough food with him and decided to camp overnight if he needed to. Once he was in he saw how eerily beautiful this forest was – the ever shifting shades of green seemed to move with him as he walked along. There were flowers and shrubs everywhere and they canopy of the trees obscured most of his view of the sky. He had been walking for a few hours when his ear's twitched. Pausing, he slowly pulled his fans out of his sleeves. He barely had time to react as three men jumped out from behind trees. They were all wearing some kind of armour (none of which matched) and from what Brekka could tell, two were benders. From their stances he guessed they were earth benders and the non-bender was holding two small, but probably quite sharp knives. They probably want to knock me unconscious and steal any valuables I have, he thought to himself. You can't let them get your weapons. Both the benders moved at the same time, using rock columns to launch themselves into the air. Brekka eyes flitted about for a second and then he rolled across the ground, dodging a knife that had just been thrown at him. The two earth benders fell back to the earth, landing in the spot that Brekka had just been occupying. The two started to bend rocks at the boy and he dodged and shifted about them as they came quickly at him. Brekka's eyes barely registered the knives that were being thrown at him as he worked on instinct alone, jumping up onto a rock and then throwing himself into the air. From mid-air, he threw a closed fan at one of the benders. It shot straight at his head and bounced off. The man grunted and fell back against a tree – hitting his head and falling unconscious. Brekka curled up his body and rotated in the air landing on his feet and pulling out his katana. But before he could move, his right sleeve was pinned against a tree. He kept hold of his fan though and ripped the material away from the knife that was holding it to the tree. He jumped up again to avoid another knife but this time rock spurted out of the ground and caught his arms. The earth bender lowered his hands quickly and the rock shot back down, bringing the flailing boy with it. His back slammed against the ground and he weapons rolled away. The boy groaned in pain as his back was pressed into the hard ground. The two men advanced on him as he struggled against the rock holding him down. The bender lazily flicked his hands and more rock encased Brekka's legs.

"Let me go!" he shouted. The men said nothing, but the non-bender pulled out one more knife, bending over Brekka. He shut his eyes so that he didn't have to see what was going to happen to him next, but suddenly a roar came out of nowhere, filling his ears with sound. The men fell away from him, fear wide in their eyes. They grabbed their fallen comrade and stumbled away from Brekka, tripping over themselves in their haste. Brekka tried to lift himself up to see what had made the noise but was still held down by the rock. He turned his head as a clawed paws smashed down on his arms. Brekka sat up and smiled broadly– Mika had come to save him! The shirshu smashed down on the rock encasing the boy's legs and broke it easily. Brekka reached out his arms and grabbed the animal around its neck, burrowing his face into his fur.

"Thank you" he whispered. The animal closed its eyes contently, enjoying the feeling of Brekka's calloused fingers running through its fur. It purred quietly as Brekka stood up, taking a look around for his fans and katana. Mika growled a little in discontent as Brekka's hands fell away from his head. "Sorry, I need my things" he apologised as he made his way over to his weapons, slipping the katana back into its scabbard and the fans into his sleeves. He turned back to Mika

"Didn't I tell you to stay with Mum?" he reprimanded "you were supposed to keep her safe. How long have you been following me for?" the animal shrugged at him and Brekka sighed – there was no chance he could turn him back now. But something popped up inside Brekka's head – all Avatars have an animal guide: Aang had a sky bison and Korra had had a polarbear dog. It looked like his was going to be his shirshu. The large beast flattened its belly onto the ground and Brekka nodded, mentally preparing himself. Mika was huge and riding him was never going to be comfortable for him. He took a firm grasp on his fur and hoisted himself up, flipping onto Mika's back. "Do you know where to go?" the shirshu turned its head to sniff at him, nodding slightly. Even without eyes Brekka could tell what the animal was saying - are you ready? Brekka barely had time to respond before Mika set off a sprint. Brekka had never been on anything that moved this fast and his laughed out loud as the wind roared in his ears.

That evening was the first time Brekka was recognised as the Avatar. News had spread fast through the towns and villages and had finally caught up with him. Brekka had been riding Mika for hours before they were in an easy walking distance of the next town. The pair made their way into the streets in search of food and possible lodging when a shout arouse from one of the shops they were passing

"It's the Avatar!" Brekka started to panic immediately. Mika stiffened next to him, not sure what to do. A tall skinny man ran out of what looked like a butchers and came towards the pair

"You're the avatar aren't you? We all heard the rumours – they hadn't found the avatar after 17 years and then all of sudden they found you! How many elements can you bend? Can you metalbend? Is that a shirshu?" the man kept blathering on at the startled boy who just kept opening and closing his mouth a like a goldfish dog, until Mika had had enough. He stood up on his haunches and roared at them man, his front paws slamming back down into the ground. The man let out a little squeal and promptly fainted. Brekka turned to the shirshu and laughed

"You shouldn't do that to people Mika" he said quietly "it scares them" Mika looked at him as if it say "What? He was annoying" Brekka smiled at the animal and then frowned as people came running towards the pair. Shouts of "it's the avatar" rang in Brekka's ears as about 20 people ran towards him. He turned to his shirshu and Mika detected the boy's nod through is keen sense of smell. For the second time in the best part of three minutes the animal roared at the entire crowd silencing them instantaneously. Brekka had never spoken to more than three people at the same time in the entire of his life, but he did his best.

"Thank you" he didn't shout at the people, just tried to embed more power into his voice "I am just passing through on my way to Ba Sing Se and I wanted to ask for any food and lodgings you could spare me. Is there an inn in this town?" a man pushed his way to the front and bent low in front of Brekka

"It would be an honour to have you stay in our town Avatar"

"Just Brekka. Is there somewhere Mika, my shirshu can stay as well?" the man nodded. He was taller than the 17 year old with greying hair and a slightly hunched stature.

"Please follow me; I own the inn here in Ruha village." The crowd parted and allowed them to walk over to the low stone building that was the inn. There was a wooden barn next door "your shirshu can stay here" he said, motioning towards the wooden construction with a thin hand. The boy looked back at Mika and nodded to him, jerking his head at the barn. The animal seemed to nod as well, giving him a lick up the face and then moving towards it. Despite the fact that shirshu saliva can knock you out or paralyze you, Brekka had become immune to it after spending the last nine years with the animal.

"Thank you" he said, turning back to the older man.

"If you would just follow me upstairs" Brekka was wound through several corridors until the taller man stopped and opened a door on his right. The door revealed a small clean room with a bed and bathroom attached to the side.

"Thank you, Mr…"

"Mr Shung"

"Thank you Mr Shung"

"My wife will bring you some food in the next hour, on the house"

"Please, don't treat me any different from normal people. I can pay"

"Please, I insist Ava- Brekka" Brekka sighed

"Fine" the older man left, closing the door gently behind him. Brekka dropped his satchel onto the bed and made his way to the window, leaning on the sill, watching the orange orb that was the sun begin to drop below the horizon. That night Brekka went to bed well fed and sleepy. His dreams were strange. He was in a tree in the middle of a forest, shades of maple and brown falling around him. He saw the kind of community built into the treetops, but it was night time so everything was quiet. There were two people sitting on a branch nearby and Brekka moved over to listen

"What are we going to do Longshot?" asked the small boy with the face paint. The taller boy with the hat looked down at the little one. He must be Longshot. But the little one replied even though the other boy had said nothing

"I know that. But Jet is dead and the freedom fighters have disbanded. The only reason that there are people still here is because they have nowhere to go" the boy with the hat curled his hand over the young boys own

"You think we should go back to Ba Sing Se?" the other nodded. "Together?" he nodded again.

"Why do people always think I'm boy?" again no noise came from the older of the two "fair point" Brekka frowned – that small boy was actually a girl? It was like she could translate his facial expressions into words. "The girls in Ba Sing Se are pretty" she said quietly. The boy, longshot opened his mouth and spoke for the first time

"I think you are beautiful Bee" the girl's eyes widened in surprise at Longshot's words. She dropped her head a blushed under her face paint. But her head shot up suddenly, her short brown hair flicking away from her face. Brekka caught a movement out of the corner of his eye and saw a flash of yellow and orange drop down the trunk of a tree nearby. He frowned – the only people who wore yellow and orange were Air Nomads from what he knew. His mother had told him how his grandmother had met the avatar back when she was a child – he had always worn the traditional yellows and oranges of the Air Nomads. Had Aang been watching them – this must have been one of his memories. Did he want Brekka to see this for a reason? The trees faded around him and he looked down to see the branch he standing on disappear completely. He began to fall straight down but there was no ground from his to land on. Brekka jolted awake with a start, the images of the couple sitting in the tree still flashing before his bright green eyes.


	3. Welcome to Ba Sing Se

It only took Brekka two more days travelling to get to Full Moon Bay where a ferry service had been set up for those who needed to get to Ba Sing Se from there. During the 100 year war it had been used to secretly transport refugees to the city, but now it was a legitimate service run by the Earth Kingdom government. Needless to say it had taken a lot of persuading to let the officials take Mika on the ferry. When he had left home one of the three men had not only given him the map but a small piece of paper with the Avatar's seal on it. It was of all four elements dancing around each other with the words "peace", "freedom", "strength" and "love" written around the pictures. This had given him permission to bring his shirshu on board. Many of the passengers were not pleased to say the least. Then he had to take the train from the outer wall over the agrarian zone where most of the agriculture took place. If you encompassed everything inside the outer wall, Ba Sing Se was more of a small country than a city. He finally arrived in the lower ring and was immediately greeted by a woman wearing the traditional greens of the Earth Kingdom. She had her hands pushed up into the opposite sleeves of her mint green kimono, the Earth Kingdom seal emblazoned on the front panel.

"Avatar Brekka. My name is Fui Ten. It is a pleasure to meet you. I work for the Earth King and I am to act as your guide around the City. I will take you to Master Bolin's house" Brekka frowned at her, processing the information. He didn't really want a guide but Ba Sing Se was huge and he had no idea where he was going to so he let the woman stay with him. She had gotten him a car which she drove herself slowly through the enormous city. Brekka had never seen a real car in his life and was amazed at the speed he could travel at if he ever learned how to drive. It took them over three hours to get to the upper ring due to all the slow driving and constant talking from the woman and finally reach where Master Bolin lived and Brekka was nervous to say the least. Mika had been following behind the car the entire time and decided that he did not like this noisy crowded place – there were too many scents and it was confusing him. He focused on his master's to keep him sane and make it easier for him to follow, the familiar earthen combinations pleasing his nose

"Here we are" Fui Ten said happily, halting the car. She got out and opened the door so that Brekka could leave too. She walked quickly up the front path to a two storey house with an orange tiled roof. Brekka followed, Mika in his wake up to the dark green door. Fui Ten knocked. A moment passed and the door was opened by a broad but quite old man. He was tall and Brekka could see the muscles under his brown shirt. He bowed to the young Avatar

"Avatar Brekka. It is an honour to finally meet you" Brekka bowed back

"Please, just Brekka. And the pleasure is all mine"

"Thank you Fui Ten, you can return home now" the woman bowed and left the pair standing in the doorway.

"Please come in Brekka we have a lot to talk about" the man stepped aside to allow Brekka to enter but he paused.

"Mika" the shirshu cocked his head "this is Master Bolin" Bolin looked a little nervous as the animal moved very close to him, sniffing the air. He smelled like tea and the earth after rain. His tongue darted out to lick the left side Brekka's face. The boy smiled "he likes you, excellent. Is there somewhere he can sleep, I don't want to just leave him outside."

"I can make him a shelter, hold on" Brekka noticed that Bolin, like him, left his feet bare to the earth. The old man lifted his right foot and stamped down, four rock columns shot out from the ground next to the side of the house. He made a pushing motion with both hands and a large flat piece of rock came from out of the building, forming a sort of roof on top of the columns. "That should be big enough" he smiled slightly and walked back inside. Brekka entered as well once Mika had curled up under the rock, and he saw a clean living and dining area. There was a girl with short dark hair sitting on a cushion on the floor, reading a book and she looked at him quizzically when he entered

"Brekka this is my adopted granddaughter, Taya" she got up and bowed to him

"It's nice to meet you too" Brekka found himself saying even though the girl had not uttered a word. Bolin frowned at him but said nothing on the subject.

"Please make yourself comfortable, I'll make some tea" Bolin moved around the kitchen, quickly boiling the water and bringing the tea to the boy. He sat down opposite and said

"So Brekka how much of an earthbender are you?"

"Not much. I can do some very basic things, but I never had an actual teacher so I worked out what I could. I know how to fight, but not how to bend" Bolin nodded slowly. Brekka found himself looking at Taya again. He saw now that her hair was not short, but tied in a bun at the back of her head. She was dressed in the traditional browns and greens of the earth kingdom but she was wearing trousers and a shirt.

"Taya came to me a few years ago" Bolin said, seeing where Brekka's line of focus was "I don't know if you know this, but back before Korra's time there was a couple that Aang met on his many travels around the world. The pair were Freedom Fighters" something sparked in Brekka's memory "I met them at Avatar Korra's wedding, and they were very old by then. Their names were Smellerbee and Longshot." Now Brekka remembered his dreams "Both of them had sustained many injuries in their lives, and as a result they could not have children. But one day when they were both over a hundred years old a baby was just left on their doorstep. They took her in and raised her as their own. But age took its toll and they both died several years ago. But before then they had asked me to raise her if anything should happen to them. She, like Longshot, is completely taciturn and I have only heard her speak once – at the funeral for my wife." The old man looked down into his tea, the pain evident in his eyes. Brekka said nothing at this, but something popped into his head.

"Did you ever have a son?" he looked up at the boy

"Yes I did, many years ago. I don't know what happened to him. It must have been 17 years ago that I last heard from him – he was travelling the world and was staying in village down south somewhere. What was it called..." he clicked his fingers, trying to remember "Li Han?"

"Le Hu" Brekka whispered

"What is it?" Brekka looked into the eyes that were exactly the same as his own

"Le Hu is where I am from. My father left my mother when he found out that she was pregnant. I was told recently that his father's name was Bolin, an ex-probender from Republic City" Bolin's eyes widened

"That makes you-"

"Your grandson" Brekka finished off. Taya had gotten up and moved closer to listen to this turn of events, her eyes just as wide.

"Wow. I never knew" Bolin was astonished. Brekka was watching his face to see what his reaction was. The old man suddenly beamed at him, the light dancing in his green eyes "This is awesome!" he was very excited "My grandson is the Avatar!" he jumped up from his seat. Taya moved over and placed a hand on his arm, calm as always. Her grey eyes moved between the two and noticed the similarities between them – they had the same eyes and very similar builds. She smiled at Brekka and as usual said nothing. Bolin sat down again and this time Taya joined them. "Taya is a very skilled fighter, you two could practice together when you aren't bending" Brekka turned to her

"Do you have a weapon of choice?"

_Throwing knives_

"Nice. Fans and katana" Bolin gasped and Taya frowned

"You understand what she says?"

"Yes"

"She's lived with me for over 8 years and I still can't work it out half the time" Brekka looked seriously at her

"Some people don't need words for others to understand them. I think I just get it"

_You think you understand me?_

"Not for a moment. Just what you say"

_I didn't say anything_

"I know" Bolin watched this whole exchange, completely mystified as he could only understand half of the conversation. Taya looked at him one more time and then left, disappearing around a corner into some other part of the house. Bolin watched her leave with a little sadness in his eyes

"Asami was like you. She always understood Taya. I've never found another person who could do that…" he trailed off, mumbling to himself. He looked back at Brekka after a moment, seeming to have forgotten he was there

"Maybe you should go and rest. I'm sure you have had a long journey" the pair got up and one followed the other around the table and towards a door. Bolin made his way through there and down a short corridor, sliding the on his left aside to allow them both to enter. "Here. There is a bathroom attached. My room is further down on the right if you need me. Just knock" Bolin turned and left the boy to himself. Brekka went back into the main area to pick up his bag and weapons which he had left by the front door upon entry. Carrying them back into his room he placed them on the table in the corner. There was a bed, chair and some bookcases in the room. He could see some pictures scattered about and picked one up. It was a family portrait of Bolin with his wife and son. He must have been in his late thirties or so, his arm around the shoulders of a beautiful woman. She had bright green eyes and long black hair that framed her oval face. The boy standing between them could have been no more than 6 or 7 with the same black hair as his mother. Brekka smiled back at the people in the picture – they all looked so happy together. Unconsciously he shifted his left foot on the ground and felt the vibrations travel up his leg – someone was coming down the corridor towards him and the footsteps were light. It must be Taya. This was an on and off skill – it worked sometimes but more often than not it just didn't happen. He was happy that it had worked this time – even though he wasn't entirely sure what the skill actually was. Barely a moment later she was silently opening his door. Brekka still had his back turned to her

"Hello" he said, turning around to face her and placing the picture back on the table

_Hello_

"Did you want something?" she frowned at him

_I don't know_

"Then why did you come here?"

_I don't know _

"Well that leaves us in a bit of a bind then doesn't it?" Taya smiled at him, the mirth reaching her eyes

_I think I came here to talk to you_

"About what?"

_I think you know what. I saw the recognition in your face when Bolin mentioned my parents._

Brekka's brow wrinkled slightly and then he answered truthfully

"Well I had a dream about them a few days ago." Taya sat down on the chair, folding her legs beneath her and Brekka sat opposite on the bed

_Go on_

"They were in this forest, but I don't know where it was. At first I thought Smellerbee was a boy – neither of them could have been more than 16 at the time. Someone called 'Jet' had died recently and the Freedom Fighters had disbanded. Longshot was like you – he didn't speak. But Smellerbee always understood him – like me with you. They were talking about going to live in Ba Sing Se together. Longshot only spoke once, after Smellerbee said something about the girls in Ba Sing Se being pretty – he said 'I think you are beautiful Bee'." Taya smiled sadly

_He told her that every day_

"Then she noticed Avatar Aang in a tree nearby – well I'm assuming it was him because I don't know if there were any other Air Nomads at the time and the person was wearing orange and yellow. And then I woke up"

_They were wonderful people. I was lucky to have them to raise me. _

Brekka nodded in appreciation to this statement and then he remember something he hand said before he left home.

"Oh no! I promised my mum I would write her a letter a soon as I got to Ba Sing Se" Taya smiled at him briefly and then went to the table, pulling at the draw underneath. The put her slim hand inside, retrieving some paper and a pencil. She gestured to the paper, smiling at him. "Thank you" he said getting up and sitting at the desk. Brekka picked up the pencil and looked back to say goodbye but the girl had already left.

Just down the corridor Bolin was standing by the window watching the sun set. In his hands was a portrait of Asami, looking as beautiful as ever. The smile on her face reached her eyes as usual, that pale, glittering green contrasting with the lilac powdered on her eyelids. She had barely been 24 when this had been painted – he had done it himself. He remembered the day that he had proposed – it was at her 23rd birthday party. Mako and Korra were then along with the whole airbender family. He had been so nervous all night but the moment he got up to make his announcement everything just fell into place. This was the third time in his life that he had seen her cry. The first was when her father had nearly killed her. The second was when she was testifying against her father in court and he had been sentenced to life imprisonment for attempted murder on multiple counts and aiding the Equalists in the anti-bending revolution. She had looked so perfect in her native Fire Nation dress, a dark red kimono with gold thread lining all the edges, offsetting her eyes faultlessly. She had died just four years ago and he shad taken it hard. At the age of 65 she still looked as beautiful as ever, and age had treated her kindly. She, like Brekka, had understood Taya from the moment they had first met, holding what looked like half conversations all the time from his point of view. He and Taya had always got on well, but they just hadn't clicked like with Asami. Spirits, he missed her.


	4. Earth Is Stubborn, Demand Your Control

Hello fellow fanfiction readers - I have finally introduced the main antagonist! Hoozah! Anyway please enjoy and R&R as always :)

Miss Buch xxx

* * *

Somewhere in the eastern Earth Kingdom…

"I'm sorry Sir!" the poor man said, cowering away from his leader

"You don't deserve to bend, you incompetent idiot"

"Please! I'm sorry!" the larger man grabbed the other's head, twisting sharply and breaking his neck instantly. He dropped like a stone onto the dirt, his eyes still wide open in fear, and the crack of his breaking bones reverberating around open space

"I hate people that apologise so much" he turned to the twenty or so men assembled around him "let that be a lesson to all of you – do not apologise to me – I don't do second chances. As energy benders we are superior to all other benders – including the Avatar. Amon was beaten because he was weak. But I am not – this little whelp of an Avatar will be crushed and so will anyone else that stands in my way. Energybending is the purest form of all bending. To keep the art pure we need to scourge the earth of those who oppose us" the men around him stayed silent, eyes never leaving the goliath of a man that led them. Li Feng turned his back and waved a hand, signalling that the men could leave him now. This man easily reached 6"7 with broad shoulders and a barrel chest. A piece of black cloth was tied at the back of his head, covering his left eye and half that side of his face. He was the greatest energy bender alive (or so he told himself) and was the one that had killed Avatar Korra. He had lost his left eye in that fight and now he had sworn revenge on the Avatar. Sure he had killed the last one but he wanted to crush the Avatar once and for all. Next on his list was this little earthbending boy who was apparently the next Avatar. His skin used to be pale but years spent indoors, perfecting his bending, had turned it and ugly grey colour – it was sallow and waxy looking, giving him an air of staleness. That man had made a big mistake in apologising – people that make mistakes don't deserve second chances. He had learnt the hard way – do not make mistakes and never underestimate your opponent.

* * *

Back in Ba Sing Se….

Brekka and Taya had followed Bolin out of the house that morning and through the giant maze that was Ba Sing Se. Brekka had sent the letter to his mother, telling her that he had made it to the city in one piece and that Mika was with him. There was a complicated postal system in Ba Sing Se that Bolin had explained briefly to the young boy. There were special boxes posted at strategic positions around the city that were serviced by air vents. The letters were carried by air currents to a central sorting area where they were then picked up by messengers and carried to wherever they needed to go. The area they were walking through at the moment was a bustling hub activity at this time of day, vendors trying their best to sell them nearly everything they had and Brekka was slightly overwhelmed by all of it. He almost got run over twice by the cars that sped by, making his hair stand on end. Taya walked on serenely next to him, making no noise in her footsteps but Brekka could see in the way she walked that she was alert. To tell the truth Taya had no idea where they were going – she assumed it was the place that Bolin went when he wanted to practice his earthbending. She had found her own spot to practice her knife throwing a couple of years ago when she was walking around the middle ring. It was a sort of forested area that, despite the number of people in the city, very few actually knew of. There were trees and bushes everywhere, giving Taya plenty of targets to practice with. Although she was taciturn like Longshot she had gotten her knife throwing skills from Smellerbee. She could use a bow and arrow too but she preferred the smooth precision that she got from the knives. Taya didn't know if there was a big enough space for them to practice earthbending that was secluded as well. She tugged on Bolin's sleeve and he looked down at the inquisitive expression on her face

"Just a little further sweetie" Taya flicked him in the arm "Sorry, no pet names in public, bad habit" Taya nodded. They rounded a corner and the trio found themselves in a deserted alleyway, far cry from the noisy market place they had just been walking through. Bolin strode ahead and stood in front of the wall that ended the narrow space. Brekka felt Taya stiffen next to him, one hand straying to her belt that synched her tunic around her slim waist. Bolin spread his legs further apart and reached out in front of him, elbows bent so that his clenched fists reached about eye level. He pulled them down quickly and the wall blocking the alley dropped down revealing an open space behind it.

"Come on" he said, waving a hand at them and gesturing for them to go ahead. The boy went first, taking a few cautious steps through where the wall had just been and into the large open space ahead. It was about the size of a small field but with no grass, just the bare earth. It was surrounded by a high stone wall that completed a perfect circle. Taya followed him in and Bolin closed up the wall behind them, enjoying the looks of interest and wonder that covered the faces of the pair of teens. "This is where I do my earthbending. I had to get special permission to have this space but it is pretty much invisible from above and almost no one knows that it's here. This is where I practice and where I will train you. Do you think that you are ready?" Brekka nodded. "Excellent. We will get started in a mo, let me just do this" Bolin leaned to the side on his left foot, taking his right off of the ground. He stamped down and a bunch of rock pillars burst out of the ground on the other side of the circle. "Have fun Taya" The girl nodded at him in thanks and jogged over to the pillars, pulling out a knife as she went and throwing it without breaking her stride.

"Right. Sit down Brekka, we need to start with a little background information" Brekka sat cross-legged in front of the old man who sat opposite.

"You said that you can earthbend a little. When was the first time that you managed it?" Brekka smiled slightly

"It was the day that I met Mika – I was only eight and he jumped on me from nowhere – I was terrified. I just threw my hand down and a little pillar shot up giving me enough space to wriggle free from underneath him" Bolin nodded.

"There are a couple of things that you need to understand about earthbending, and all types of bending to be honest. Being friends with Korra taught me a lot so I understand all the types of bending even if I can only work with earth." Bolin stood up "There are five main types of bending and different sub types to each. Earth is demanding, it is extremely stubborn. Water is patient, it will wait forever. Air is adaptable and can be used for whatever you want. Fire is precise and does not leave room for mistakes or compromise." Brekka nodded "you will probably learn more about this as you learn the other elements. The fifth type is energy bending. There are two types – this new crazy bending is something that I don't want to go into. But the other type is something only the Avatar can do – it is the ability to take away or give back someone's bending – I saw Korra do it on more than one occasion and it was amazing." Bolin's eyes glazed over for a moment as he remembered the time he had first seen Korra do this – when she was restoring Lin Beifiong's bending to its former glory. Korra's eyes had glowed that incandescent white he then learned to associate with the Avatar State and the older woman had just stood up, lifted up her arms and caused a number of large boulders to raise several metres into the air. The sight itself would have been awesome even he had not seen her just get her bending back. Bolin snapped back the present, his eyes blinking furiously for a second. Brekka frowned at him but said nothing as he resumed his speech "Anyway back to earth bending. There are three types of earthbending. There is the usual type, just earth. The two others are metalbending and sandbending. I learnt metalbending from Lin Beifong, the daughter of the greatest earthbender that ever lived. She invented metalbending. We will get onto those later, just for now we were start with normal earth. Now I just want to test something" Brekka raised an eyebrow at him. "There are three main types of something called 'jing' – positive, negative and neutral. Positive is attack – firebending is based heavily on this. Negative is evade – this is important in airbending. Neutral is doing nothing"

"Why would you be doing nothing?"

"Neutral jing is the ability to wait and do nothing until the time is right for action. Almost all the living earthbenders use positive jing. With earth and firebending the movements for attack and defence are very different. However only a few have ever mastered or even understood neutral jing even though it is a very important part of earthbending. The Beifongs were two of them. Avatar Aang could also do this. So can I. I also have a feeling that you can too"

"What gives you that impression?" Bolin did not answer his question

"Sit with both your feet and hands on the ground" Brekka did has he was told "now close your eyes and breath deep – in through the nose and out through the mouth" the boy inhaled deeply "extend your earthbending. Let it fill you up. Feel the space around you. Feel the vibrations" Bolin started to walk in a small circle around him. Brekka was surprised – he could feel the vibrations of Bolin's light but steady steps around him. He could even feel Taya practically dancing around the pillars on the edge of his earthbending vision "Without opening your eyes, I want you to point to where I am standing" Brekka pointed over to his right, directly at Bolin. "By using this technique you can feel what your opponent is going to do before they get a chance to do it and then you can either attack or defend. You can stand up and open your eyes now" Brekka relaxed his body and stood, brushing the dirt off his hands

"Attack and defence is easy. It is learning to wait and listening to the earth which is difficult"

"How did you know that I could do that?"

"Well, first, if you were a positive jing user then you would be bigger. And second I heard you and Taya last night. I felt her move towards your room – you didn't move when she came and you had your back to her. But you said hello and her footsteps are too light to be heard unless you were really listening for them. I am light on my feet from pro-bending but I am nowhere near as light or agile as her."

"So what now?"

"Move this rock" Bolin stamped one foot and rock appeared out of the ground next to Brekka. "Take your stance, like this" Brekka copied Bolin's movements, spreading his feet wide, bunching his hands into fists and holding them at his waist with is elbows bent. "This is the most basic of all earthbending moves. Everything else you learn will be based on this. As an earthbender you have to face things head on" only one side of Bolin's body moved as he punched the air next to him. Brekka closed his eyes and concentrated, doing exactly the same as his master had showed him. The large rock wobbled.

"Try again. Keep going until you get it. Listen to the earth and demand that it moves for you" Brekka focused his thoughts. _Come on rock! Move!_ He could hear the earth whispering to him as he moved the same as last time. The large piece of earth rocketed away from him and hit the wall, hard

"Nice work Brekka! You are going to be an excellent earthbender, I can tell" Brekka smiled at him. Bolin took a different stance and lifted lots more boulders out of the ground. "Keep practicing – I want this to be as easy as picking your nose by the end of the day" Bolin turned his back and made his way slowly towards his adopted granddaughter. Taya made no noise as she jumped from pillar to pillar, her knives leaving her hands in flashes of silver as her catlike movements transported her around the space that he had set up for her. She was wearing her usual practice clothing – a vest covered by a dark green tunic with brown leather trousers and black boots knee high to protect her legs. Her hair was tied back in its usual bun and Bolin lamented the fact that she never wore it down – it looked so pretty. He waved a hand and the pillar she was crouching on dropped back into the earth. She jumped off with incredible speed onto another one but Bolin kept dropping them down. _I need to break his stance_; she thought and threw a knife quickly at him from mid jump, landing on her hands on the next pillar. Bolin saw the knife and ducked left. Taya took her opportunity and flew over the pillars towards Bolin, rolling across the ground when she landed behind him. Bolin felt her land and took a step backwards causing a hole to for beneath her, but she had already cartwheeled away. Taya flipped forward over to her adopted grandfather and landed in a handstand on his shoulders. Bolin widened his stance to accommodate the extra weight and reached up to her forearms, lifting her whole body up above him. Taya concentrated, letting her balance completely slip and forcing him to drop her. Bolin used the momentum to roll himself across the ground and stand up straight again. He called to the earth and began to throw small but sharp stones at her, grunting at each movement while she, as usual, stayed completely silent. Taya ducked and dived, dodging everything he threw at her. She flipped forward, doing a single rotation in the air and kicking Bolin in the chest, making him stumble backwards slightly and then pull a large flat piece of stone from the ground behind him and throw it at her. Taya jumped over the rock, letting it crash into the ground far away from her. Both stopped moving, the older breathing heavily and the younger watching him warily. Bolin suddenly bowed to Taya "You have the agility of an airbender Taya. The patience of a waterbender. The strength of and earthbender and the precision of a firebender. You are a master of the key parts of all types of bending and yet you can bend nothing. What am I going to do with you now?" Taya smiled at him, cocking her head slightly. Bolin opened his arms wide and she stepped into the hug, holding on tightly. Brekka had stopped bending to watch the fight between Bolin and Taya and the older man caught sight of him now with is earthbending vision – he was just standing there, watching them.

"Get on with it Brekka!" he shouted over, moving his bare foot ever so slightly, making a tiny pillar pop up under the boy and causing him to fall over. Taya had seen this and smiled the laughter evident on her face.


End file.
